Book Review- Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the Life of the Sun King by Antonia Fraser.

Today I am sharing my thoughts on the book: Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the life of the Sun King. By Antonia Fraser.

Synopsis

Mistresses and wives, mothers, and daughters - Antonia Fraser brilliantly explores the relationships which existed between The Sun King and the women in his life. This includes not only Louis XIV's mistresses, principally Louise de La Valliere, Athenais de Montespan, and the puritanical Madame de Maintenon, but also the wider story of his relationships with women in general, including his mother Anne of Austria, his two sisters-in-law who were Duchesses d'Orleans in succession, Henriette-Anne and Liselotte, his wayward illegitimate daughters, and lastly Adelaide, the beloved child-wife of his grandson.

My Review

When it comes to historical figures I am predominantly drawn to women. As a woman myself, I can relate to their stories better than those of men. However, I am utterly captivated by Louis XIV’s story. After reading Antonia Fraser’s book Marie Antoinette: The Journey which turned out to be one of my favourite biographies ever, I was excited to discover that Antonia had also written a book about Louis XIV and the women in his life. I was particularly interested in learning more about Louis' relationship with the charismatic Athenais de Montespan and his platonic relationship with Liselotte – his hilariously sarcastic and cutting sister-in-law.

When I bought the book, I thought it was going to be sectioned into mini-biographies of each of the women’s lives instead, it was more of a biography of Louis XIV, with the main focus being his relationships with women. I like that Antonia also explored his non-romantic female relationships, such as the relationship he had with his mother, sister-in-law, and granddaughters etc.

The book is split into four parts, the last being the hardest going for me, due to the overwhelming number of names included in the book. It was hard to keep track of who everyone was, so as I neared the end I was getting a bit overwhelmed and struggled! However, that is not the author’s fault, I don’t have a huge knowledge of French history and who all the key players were, it has only captured my interest in the past couple of years.

By the time Louis XIV died aged 76, he had reigned France for 72 years and surprisingly, he hadn’t had as many mistresses as I expected him to have had in his long life! Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It was impeccably researched and included many footnotes, which I always appreciate. I loved learning more about the fascinating women in the life of The Sun King. I find Antonia’s writing style easy to read and it holds my interest. She brings history back to life and I look forward to reading more of her books!

Have you read Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the life of the Sun King? Did you enjoy it?

 I am including an Amazon link, but please buy from an independent bookshop if they have it in stock!